"Kingsley?" Remus repeated. "Are you sure?"
"Of course I am not," said Mrs Weasley impatiently. "But just the other day, he and Hagrid were talking about beasts, and he mentioned his father once having been attacked by a Chimera. He did not say that he died, though. But nonetheless, how many Scottish wizards d'you reckon have been attacked by Chimeras in this century?"
"Not many," said Ron, grinning.
"You should go and get him, Remus." Even Mrs Weasley now showed all signs of excitement. "I just wonder why he never told us."
"I reckon Kingsley's not allowed to talk about it," said Remus musingly. "It might still involve some forbidden practices."
"I don't think so," Hermione contradicted. "I suppose he mustn't talk about it because if he would, everyone would go and try to resurrect their dead, also those who died rightfully - and I suppose resurrecting those would go terribly wrong."
"You may have a point there, dear," said Mrs Weasley. "It would explain why the muggles are so very much afraid of the living dead they call 'zombies'. Maybe there were some people who resurrected their dead and they came back as monsters, because they were disturbed in their rest."
"But how do we know that Sirius won't come back as a what's-it-called?" asked Ginny, her eyes wide open.
"His death was certainly unexpected, and I very much doubt that it was rightful," said Remus slowly. "Moreover, don't you see the parallels between his case and that of Saturnus McGraw? Both were like a father to a boy they left behind, and both fought against the most evil wizard of their time - two good reasons to argue if it was a rightful death. It can't be rightful to deprive a boy of his father for the second time..."
Harry lowered his eyes and secretly wiped a tear away. He felt a hand touch his arm and stroke it tenderly.
"The odds are in our favor," said Ginny calmly. "We'll send for Kingsley and hear his story, if he agrees to tell it. We'll know a lot more afterwards."
"I can't stand that, Ginny," whispered Harry. "I've only just started to cope with my grief, and now there's new hope... if it proves to be false hope, I don't think I can endure any longer."
"Stop it," whispered Ginny and took him in her arms. "Stop talking like that. We'll know soon, be patient..."
xxx
Kingsley Apparated with a loud crack right in the middle of the living room. When he saw all the serious faces looking up at him, he gave an uneasy chuckle.
"What's wrong, Remus?" he asked. "Why did you summon me back?"
"Kingsley, there is something we must ask you," said Remus. "Won't you please sit down? This might be a bit of a shock for you..."
Kingsley laughed. "It must be a real slap in the face, then," he said while sitting down on Petunia's best sofa. "There is not much in this world that can shock me."
"It's about your past..."
"My past?" Kingsley looked alerted.
"Something that happened in your childhood." Remus spoke carefully and watched Kingsley closely.
Kingsley went pale. "What would you know about my childhood, Remus?" he asked sharply.
Remus stepped beside Harry and laid one hand on his shoulder, again in this casual way Sirius had always done it. "There's lots of things I know, Kingsley," he said, "although I must admit that I learned this one from Molly here." He gave a nod in the direction of Mrs Weasley. "I only knew the story - she knew it was you."
"Who was me?" Kingsley sounded impatient, but Harry could now see that his eyes were flickering, moving fast from left to right. Kingsley did not look relaxed at all.
"The adopted son of Saturnus McGraw," said Remus.
Kingsley stared at him. He did not even try to contradict. "How do you know?" was all he managed.
"Nevermind." Remus stepped closer, pulling Harry along with him. "Am I right?"
Kingsley looked down. "Yes, you are," he said, now calmly.
"Well then, you might already have guessed why we called on you..."
Kingsley looked up and directly at Harry. "You don't know what you're doing," he said. "This is not funny, Harry. Forget it, please. Resurrecting the dead is not allowed. I know that you must miss Sirius like hell, but it's not worth risking your life and the lives of everyone who's near you."
"Risking my life?" asked Harry. "Don't you know I would do anything to bring Sirius back? If it's dangerous, then I'm happy to face the danger. It can't be lethal... after all, you're still here, aren't you?"
"It was different with me." Kingsley looked him in the eyes, and suddenly his facial expression changed. He stared at him, and Harry knew that he had now noticed the change in his eyes.
"Your eyes," Kingsley said in a hoarse voice. "They've changed their color."
"So have mine," said Remus.
"And ours, too," added Ron and gestured at Ginny, Hermione and his mother.
"It's a familiar phenomenon, isn't it, Kingsley?" said Remus. "It has occurred in your own family, too."
"Yes, it has." Kingsley drew a deep breath. "Before I tell you my tale, Remus, how much do you already know?"
"We deduced most of it, actually," said Remus apologetically. "We know that Saturnus McGraw died when the Chimera attacked him, and that you somehow managed to bring him back. We suppose that this was possible because it wasn't his fate to die then - he was meant to remain on earth much longer and do what he was there for. That's why you could do it. We also assume that you weren't allowed to talk about it because then there would be others who tried to resurrect their own dead, probably with fatal results."
"That's true," said Kingsley.
"The change in the colors of our eyes means we're suffering from a grief that we shouldn't suffer. Our souls can't take all the pain, because they were never meant to suffer like this, here and now."
Kingsley nodded. "That's what I suppose, too. He didn't explain it to me..."
"He?" asked Remus. "Who's he?"
"I'll come to that in a minute. Let me just start my tale in my own way..." Kingsley sat up straight. His black fists opened and closed nervously.
"I was adopted by Saturnus McGraw in 1914," he began. "I was three years old. My parents had died; they were killed by Nero Redsnake, who was kind of the predecessor of He Who Must Not Be Named. Not as powerful and terrible as him, but he was evil enough. My parents were Aurors, and they had become a danger for him. Well, I was suddenly an orphan, and so they put me into a children's home. A magical one, of course. But I only stayed there for two weeks, then Saturnus came and took me with him. He adopted me, and he was the best father I could have wished for. In 1927, when I was sixteen, he was attacked by that runaway Chimera. He died at once... I could neither say goodbye, nor could I bury him. His body was... gone."
"Another parallel," whispered Remus to himself.
"I couldn't take it. I spent weeks and weeks alone in my room, first not being able to cry, then crying my eyes out. I had hardly any friends, so there wasn't much that kept me alive. I didn't even want to go back to Hogwarts, although I knew that Saturnus would've wanted me to. When I was finally prepared to meet other people again, I started looking for ways to contact Saturnus. About that time, I also noticed that my eyes had changed their color. As you can see, they're of a very dark brown. But at that time, they were almost hazel. And they looked cold and empty... just like yours, Harry. Well, I tried almost everything. I asked Nearly Headless Nick if there was any chance that Saturnus would return as a ghost, but he said no. I asked Professor Sunbeam, who taught Divination back then, if she could channel Saturnus's ghost for me, so that I could at least talk to him. She said she couldn't. I tried to get hold of a time-turner, but of course no one gave one to me. Everyone knew what I would then try to do, and you might know that it's very dangerous to change the past... moreover, it was too long ago. I would've had to hide for two months, for I would've existed twice. I read every book in the library that had the word 'resurrection' in its index, but I didn't find anything useful. I even took some Polyjuice Potion and sneaked into the Slytherin's dormitory, as I knew that some of them had books about the Dark Arts, and I was wondering if maybe in the Dark Arts there was a way to bring the dead back to life. Unfortunately I only found instructions to create a living dead, a very stupid and ugly creature, mostly already halfway through the state of decomposition, who fed on the brains of the living. Of course I didn't want Saturnus to return as a monster. And then, during the Christmas holidays, I discovered a book at a muggle friend's of mine. It was about angels. The muggles love angels. This particular book was a kind of encyclopedia - you could look up the name of any angel, and his rank and functions were listed. I was just browsing the book out of boredom when a name struck me: Yehudiah. I don't know why it struck me, but I simply had to know what he was responsible for. So I read further and found out that Yehudiah was the Angel of Sorrow and Grief, and that there was a ritual to call him, and that he would then descend and give you consolation. I borrowed the book and took it home, and on the next day I tried to call Yehudiah. My eyes had gone nearly gray by then and still lost color. I know now that it was a very close call - if I had gone on like I had before, my whole soul would soon have died. I did the ritual, and I really had the feeling that the angel was listening to me, but nothing happened. I was disappointed, although I had half feared that nothing would happen. After all, it was a book written by a muggle for muggles, and what do they know of rituals? So I went to bed. But in that night, I dreamed of a beautiful, shining figure who spoke to me in a foreign tongue I couldn't understand. But when I woke the next day, I suddenly knew what to do. I knew that I had dreamed of Yehudiah, and that he had told me what I could do. On the same day, I set off to find him. I never had to ask anyone or invoke the angel again - the knowledge what to do was there in my head."
"So what was it you did?" asked Mrs Weasly eagerly.
Kingsley looked at her. "I cannot say," he said. "I know that I walked for a long time. I know that I met the angel at the end of the way and he led me to another place. I know that we then returned to the place where Saturnus had died. And I know that, when I woke up the next day, Saturnus was sitting beside me. But I can't tell you what exactly it was I did along the way, or where I went. I knew it at the moment I was there, and a second later the memory of it had faded. I suppose this is also so that no one can ask me and then do what I did. I'm sorry, Harry, I cannot help you any further."
Harry was on the verge of tears again. He had set all his hopes in Kingsley.
"Hang on," said Hermione, who had been watching Harry. "This doesn't mean that we have to give up. Maybe there is no pattern or formula to it. Maybe the way is different every time. You might have to call that angel yourself, Harry, and what he'll tell you might be completely different from what he told Kingsley."
"I think so, too," said Ginny. "It's another one's fate, so I think it's pretty logical that there is also another way."
"Which was that book you found Yehudiah in, Kingsley?" asked Hermione. "Did you keep it?"
"I think so," said Kingsley. "I don't remember returning it to my friend... we were all too excited about Saturnus's return..."
"Then go and fetch it, man," said Ron breathlessly. "What are you waiting for?"
"I just...," began Kingsley, but Hermione interrupted him.
"Listen, Kingsley, you can't do anything wrong, can you? You just lend Harry a muggle book, nothing more."
"I'll be right back," said Kingsley and Disapparated without further comment.
xxx
Harry, Remus, Hermione, Ron, Ginny and Mrs Weasley looked at each other.
"Do you really think it'll work?" asked Ron quietly.
"It's worth a try," said Mrs Weasley. She did not sound convinced. Harry noticed that she tried to exchange a glance with Remus, but Remus did not look at her.
'He really believes it,' realized Harry. He himself felt very odd. One the one hand he desperately wished for his pain to end, but on the other hand he couldn't really believe that this would work. Magic was one thing, but angels were not exactly magical. They were religious figures, and Harry had never really known much about religion. The Dursleys never went to church, not even on Christmas Day, and so didn't Harry. When he had just learned about the wizarding world, he had wondered if angels were maybe a part of it. But then he had realized that they were something out of the two worlds he knew. He had never neither really believed in them nor exactly doubted their existence, and now he was about to invoke one. Who wouldn't be confused by that?
"Give it a try," said Remus quietly to Harry when he noticed that Harry was thinking about it. "Please."
Harry looked at Remus. He looked as calm as always, but his eyes were pleading. Harry could understand him perfectly; if there was anyone who wished as much as Harry for Sirius to return, it must be Remus.
"Of course I will," he said, and the lump in his throat became bigger again. He had only just realized that he was given a real chance to end his misery and that of his friends. "Of course, Remus."
A tear rolled down Remus's cheek, and he hugged Harry. Harry clung to him, thinking again that, if his parents hadn't died, Remus and Sirius would probably have been like older brothers to him.
"Kingsley takes long," said Mrs Weasley musingly. "What's so difficult in finding a book?"
"He'll be right back, Mom," said Ron.
He had barely finished his sentence when Kingsley returned. He carried a book under his cloak.
"There it is," he said simply and held it out to Harry.
Harry hesitated. He still couldn't believe all this.
Hermione sighed, stepped forward and took the book. She flipped through the pages and shrieked.
"My mom has this, too," she said. "She's a bit into esotericism, you know... but I'd never have dreamed that the rituals in it really work!"
"I don't think they work when a muggle tries them," said Kingsley, shrugging.
"Take it, Harry," said Hermione quietly and shoved the book into Harry's hand.
"You should be alone when you do the ritual," said Kingsley. "Yehudiah doesn't like people who are distracted. It makes their plea seem less important."
"I wouldn't try it at a party," said Harry angrily. Then he turned to Mrs Weasley. "I doubt that I can do it here," he said. "You never know when my cousin might want to interfere... and if Yehudiah sends me on a journey, too, I'd get in trouble with them..."
"Of course you'll come with us to The Burrow," said Mrs Weasley determinedly. "I wanted to suggest that to you, anyway. You've stayed here long enough. Go upstairs and get your things. I'll make sure that your aunt and uncle know where you are."
"They won't care," said Harry. "They only let me stay here because they have to - otherwise they would cause my death or something worse..."
"Either way, I'll let them know," said Mrs Weasley.
"Come on, Harry, we're gonna pack your things," said Ron. He took Harry's arm and together, they mounted the stairs and entered Harry's room.
Ron sneered. "You should let in some fresh air," he said. "It's rather, er, stale."
Harry grinned faintly. "Want some breakfast?" He asked and indicated his uneaten food.
"Nah, thanks." Ron grinned. "I'll feed Hedwig. She looks hungry."
"Hedwig!" Harry rushed over to the cage and opened it. Hedwig hooted, took wing and then perched on Harry's shoulder. He stroked her. "Sorry for having left you alone," he said. "I've had a very hard time, you know."
Hedwig hooted again, tenderly pinched his earlobe with her beak and then flew over to Ron, who gave her a few of his owl cakes.
Harry opened his trunk and started throwing in his clothes and books. Ron helped him, and ten minutes later, they closed the trunk and hauled it downstairs. Harry ran upstairs again to get Hedwig's cage and his Firebolt, which he had received back from Dumbledore on the last day of the last term. His life-long ban from Quidditch had been declared null and void as well, and so had all the Educational Decrees that Professor Umbridge had introduced.
Mrs Weasley was waiting for them at the fireplace. She was opening a plastic bag, which turned out to be filled with floo powder. When Harry and Ron had reached the fireplace, she held the bag out to Ron. "Take his trunk, will you, dear?"
"Sure," said Ron, sighing. He took a handful of floo powder, threw it into the fire, called, "The Burrow!" and stepped into the fire, carrying Harry's trunk in one hand. One second later, he had vanished.
Hermione, Ginny and Remus followed, then Harry stepped forward. He did not like traveling by floo powder, but at least it went quite fast. In two years he would be able to Apparate, then he would not need the floo network any longer. He threw his handful into the fire, clasped Hedwig's cage and his Firebolt and stepped into the fire. He started rotating at his own axis at once and closed his eyes, lest he get dizzy. Then it stopped, and Harry could hardly prevent himself from falling out of the Weasleys' fireplace. He stepped out of it and promptly tripped over his trunk, which Ron had left right in front of the fireplace. This time he did fall down, and while he was still trying to tell his arms from his legs, he suddenly felt four arms around him and a loud, rather disharmonic singing: "Potter's back! Potter's back!"
"Yes, I am," he mumbled.
Fred and George pulled him to his feet.
"So good to see you, mate," said George, beaming at Harry.
"Our benefactor," added Fred. "Have you read the article about us in the Daily Prophet?"
"Sorry to say I haven't," said Harry. "I haven't read the paper for the past few weeks."
"Go and get it," said Fred to George. "He just has to see it."
George took his wand. "Accio Daily Prophet, last Wednesday' issue!"
The paper came flying from the shelf, and George caught it.
"There you go," said he and shoved it under Harry's nose. But Harry shook his head.
"Can I borrow that?" he asked. "I've other things on my mind right now..."
"Sure." Harry could have sworn that George blushed a little - although that was as good as impossible. He had never seen one of the Weasley twins blush.
"Ron already told us," said Fred. "We have all available fingers and toes crossed for you, Harry. We miss him, too."
"Thanks." Harry took his baggage and moved away from the fireplace, where Mrs Weasley was due to arrive at any second. "I'll just take that stuff upstairs into Ron's room. Be right back."
"See ya," shouted Fred.
Harry went upstairs. He heard voices in Ron's room, and when he opened the door, everyone turned to him.
"Just put that stuff down there," said Ron and took a few steps aside. Harry put down his trunk and his broomstick. Then he opened Hedwig's cage and put it on the shelf next to Pigwidgeon's cage.
"Welcome back, Harry," said Bill, who had been sitting on Ron's bed and now stood up.
Ron's room was rather small, so it seemed very crowded with Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Harry, Bill, Remus and Arthur.
"So you think you might bring Sirius back... with help from a muggle book?" Arthur couldn't quite hide his enthusiasm. "Would you be so kind as to lend it to me when you're done with it?"
"It's Kingsley's, not mine," said Harry, who couldn't help grinning.
"And apparently it's not quite harmless," added Hermione with a warning glance at Arthur. "Kingsley said so..."
"Oh, come on, Hermione," said Ron. "Dad's not gonna try and resurrect his grandfather."
"Don't make fun of it," said Remus warningly. "You never know who's listening. If you're to careless about the matter, Yehudiah might think that you don't deserve the happiness of seeing the deceased again."
"But that would be completely unfair," objected Ron. "If I make fun of it, it's not Harry's fault. He can't deny Harry what he asks him for just because I..."
"Cut it," said Bill calmly. "OK?"
"OK." Ron kept his mouth shut for the next thirty minutes.
xxx
"I suppose you'd prefer a room of your own this time." Mrs Weasley did not wait for Harry to answer, but showed him another door between Ginny's and Remus's rooms.
Harry did not object. It might really be better if no one was around during the ritual and its preparations. And who knew where he would have to go afterwards...
